


sun and moon

by httpsuh



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Cameos, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Ghosts, Grim Reapers, Heavy Angst, M/M, cameo yangyang jisung, grim reaper! taeil, hyuckil, implied nohyuck, implied past johnil, minor lumark, patient! haechan, theres a little fluff okay its not all everything angst, well to be exact there is nohyuck
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-15
Updated: 2020-04-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:48:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,112
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23597119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/httpsuh/pseuds/httpsuh
Summary: in a world where being a grim reaper is an occupation, Moon Taeil, the infamous cold grim reaper find a bright sun amidst of his dark world filled with countless cases of deaths, Lee Donghyuck.
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Moon Taeil
Comments: 9
Kudos: 42





	1. when the moon meets the sun and fell in love with its beautiful bright light

**Author's Note:**

> i was writing this as a part of my self made one day one fic challenge, i intended this to be short, at first, but it passes 10k words so i think why not make it chaptered, anyways, yes, heres my first hyuckil fic enjoy

“That’s all i’ve got to do? Really?”

Taeil shifted his gaze down one more time to the black shining paper written with a golden tint, made of an unbreakable wood fibre, re-reading at his current mission and goals, instructions, everything, he snorts at how bafflingly easy his task were, all he need is to take a literal child’s life, he’s diagnosed with chronic cancer stage four for all of his life, his death is in twenty-four days. “Johnny you can’t be serious,” he flings his mission papers back to Johnny, his colleague, and also _god_ ’s number one right-hand man’s desk. “I’ve been working long enough to receive more than taking a literal kid’s life.”

“Damn moon you sure is ambitious as ever, but no, that’s not the reason _bossman_ assign you to this kid,” the man behind the desk chuckled, his feet were on the desk, he uses his free hands to light up his nth cigarette, at this point, his office’s smell became more and more alike to the smell of smokes and cigars and Taeil lowkey hated it. “Trust me, moon, i would willingly exchange mine with yours because i don’t wanna be affiliated with someone as cursed as a serial killer but _bossman_ said, it’s no regular easy assigned task,” Johnny bit his cigar in between his teeth while the both of his fingers motioned the ‘quoting’ motion.

The smaller man across Johnny scoffs, rolling his eyes. “You do realize that _bossman_ have said those kinds of bullshit like, a millionth time now, don’t you John?” the man said, squinting his eyes, he hated being underestimated and always do, Johnny knew him best which is why Johnny doesn’t mind him giving him the squinting eyes, he’s used to it, especially after _god_ appointed him as the, quote-unquote, _right-hand man_ . “I’m gonna talk to him, i don’t understand _why_ would i be taking care of a mother-fuckin _kid_ while i can just take care of ones like yours instead, a goddamn psychopath, fuck sake i don’t understand him.”

“You know what they say moon, god has its own ways to show his magic and miracles or some shit i don’t understand that i catch the mortals saying,” Johnny exhales, putting down his cigars he leaned in closer to Taeil, even as the _god_ ’s favorite pet he still has the fear that he might be around to catch him saying some of this things his colleagues don’t dare saying inside the HQ, them both being a veteran worker that has lived for more than a thousand years as a, so called privilege‒named immortality‒from their boss, had get used to it.

Them working as grim reapers standing in the middle of the heaven grounds and hell grounds, does sure, wholeheartedly, agree that Hell is more of a fun place than the peaceful heaven, or maybe that was just Johnny and his weird-ass kink that he grow after living for more than a hundred years, yes, in conclusion, Taeil thought that man may had gone insane.

Taeil scratches his non-itching head, looking away from the golden tinted paper, he looked around until his gaze stopped on the windows, outside, was only clouds and nothing else he could see except he went in higher and closer to his bossman’s office, then he sighs. “ _Fuck_ ,” is all he can mutter.

He knew once the god said his words he can’t do jack-shit but to obey, that is, unless, he wanted to face the _damned consequences_.

Johnny recognizes the face immediately finishes off his smoking period and inhale. “So, when will you leave? It’s three weeks ahead of you, you probably have to get your ass there soon enough,”

Yeah, right, fuck talking with his bossman let’s just get this shit over with first. He thought to himself as he grabs that predicament and carefully folding it so it could fit in his pocket, no one knew about this, by _no one_ he means the newly recruited grim reaper. So every time he had to train them the number one thing he told would be. “You know there’s no obligation to keep the paper unharmed and shit, right? You can always fold them around and put it in your pocket.”

That’s out of the topic, but, right, Taeil sighs once again before he glance to the other side of the office, the exit door, the _magic_ , exit door that can teleport him immediately to his next stop. “I can’t fucking believe i’m taking care of a child,” he don’t know how many times have he said those kind of thing already, but he can’t help it, he _can’t_ because he felt, what, humiliated? Belittled?

Johnny brushes his shoulder one more time. “I’m pretty sure it’s not something the _god_ would do to belittle you, Taeil, not to be his goddamn pet but i’m pretty sure he has his own reasons, so stop being so goddamn furious you’re scaring me out,” as the last sentence draw out of his lips, Johnny hit him softly on the shoulder before giggling as he said. “Now go hot-headed man, finish your three-weeks long job and come back smiling after it finished.”

Yeah, that’s what he definitely gonna do.

After this all ends, with a victory smile, he _surely_ would.

<>

Most of the grim reapers around his area would definitely recognizes him, especially with him being small compared to the other grim reapers, they would _definitely_ question on why is he lurking on the intern-grim reapers area.

Taeil rolled his eyes at the amount of unwanted attention on him, _all_ of it, it’s unnecessary and annoying, he smiled once or twice whenever someone greeted him but glared at everyone who lurk, _disrespectfully_ , with no manners at all, he would say. He’d say things like “Fuck off mind your own business,” but he’s not in the mood, well, thankfully he’s not, living more than thousands of years no one knows what can that little man do with his bare hands alone.

“Ok here goes nothing,” he murmured to himself in that all-black attire, and an iconic hat that would make him go invisible, he stepped inside the hospital, his ears immediately filled with white noises of people running around and coughing, two or more people may have walked pass his invisible torso, thats okay, he don’t mind, hes so used to being invisible he didn’t even budge anymore.

He walked through the hallway passing by numerous of his acquainted colleagues asking how come he landed his feet here, all he can say is. “You know our boss and his bullshit, i can’t do anything but obey if i receive his words can i?”

“Ah shit, you’re right, good luck with your job Moon,”

It’s all only a necessity, and a form of courtesy to someone who has worked longer than anyone else, most of his ranked grim reapers have chosen to either live a normal mortal life or ascend to reincarnate, ones who incarnate are mostly the ones who became a grim reaper out of their own will aka, it being a punishment to them, some of them even witness their loved ones ascend, Taeil has been around for a long time he still can imagine how hard it must be to some of them.

While the ones who choose to live a normal life is usually ones who willingly assign themselves as grim reapers in exchange of something more important, like Taeil, for example.

Taeil walked through an amount of crowd until he stopped in front of a room, where he find his colleague smiling to a child, ah, he thought, glancing over the lying body behind a door, he smiled before giving a little nod to his colleague and proceed to walk away from the area.

Not long until he finally arrived at his destination.

He walked through the wall to find a nurse and a doctor checking up on his _mission subject_ , he leaned on a wall, dragging up his folded mission paper to see if he got the boy right, _lee donghyuck, 23, chronic cancer._ He murmured them and scanned over the room for a much needed prove, he find them when one of the nurses called out his name. “Mister Lee, we have tried our best but your condition is, unfortunately, hard to be cured when you don’t have the‒”

“How many days do i have left?”

Taeil lift up his head when he heard such honey-like voice spoke, in this clamped room, the boy in his own bed smiled mourningly while he left both the nurses and the doctor speechless. “I know i don’t have much time left, if i happens to die tomorrow i just want to make the best out of it before i passed.”

He scanned over the figure quickly, honey-like skin that matches the tone of his voice when he spoke, bright radiant eyes that seemed tired, he understood why, he have seen enough to understand.

The awkward silence fill in the room while all Taeil did was chilling on the corner of the room, overhearing the conversation the three of them made while suddenly he caught the boy staring, at him, right in the eyes.

Taeil furrowed his eyebrows, making eye-contact with the boy before in the end, one of them broke the stare and looked away. “Lee Donghyuck? Are you listening?” it was the doctor, he looks annoyed, at least that’s what Taeil saw in the doctor’s eyes. “We are trying our best, but with the lack of fund your guardian gave us we’re afraid we can’t do anything else except all of these… “

Taeil snorts, basic reason, they can if they wanted to in Taeil’s opinion, the lack of fund whatsoever is just a reason, that is incredibly stupid considering doctors should have tried their best to save their patients. Taeil glanced over to the nurses, they seems… what, do they feel guilty for not being able to do anything else?

Though in this state, they can’t do anything to save the child’s life, twenty-four more days until he get to escort him to ascend.

He watches the three of them leaving the room while Lee Donghyuck sat smiling all by himself, alone, because he’s quite sure that boy can’t see him‒

“You heard them, right? They can’t save me because my parents refuses to give me my medication funds, they really want me to die that bad,” a voice spoke. Donghyuck’s voice, it made Taeil lifted up his head, this is an odd case he had right here, someone, non-ghosts, non to him as if other-worldly spirit, spoke as if they can see him, wait no, scratch that, can _he_ see him? Why is he talking as if there’s someone else in the room with him?

Taeil lift up his head and their eyes met, Donghyuck were smiling. “You can take off your hat and stop pretending to be invisible, i can see you,” he said, looking right on Taeils eyes then he chuckled. “I always know that grim reapers has such unique eyes but why am i surprised seeing yours?”

“You can see me?” Taeil’s voice is calm, but sent shivers to Donghyuck’s spine, maybe because of how calm he is despite how he seemed pretty surprised.

In Donghyuck’s eyes, Taeil was calm, contented, cold, but mesmerizing, even though he’s probably here to escort him ascending, yes Donghyuck knew one or two things about grim reapers, they were around the hospital for most of the time that sometimes Hyuck mistook them as a regular visitor or patient. “Very much clearly, i also can see ghosts, so yes i can see you, i talked to your colleagues too and they told me about my grim escort,”

This is weird, odd, Taeil liked it, the boy he’s assigned to has an oddly friendly reaction upon seeing his appearance while mostly will just freakout and he had to calm them down for most of the day. Taeil smiled. “You know my colleagues?”

“Oh, yeah, met them once, maybe thrice, some of them pay me a visit and gave me things i can’t believe they would have, some let me touches their scythe of death, i shivered, theres a lot of death there,” taeil didn’t know how this became a casual conversation, he sat on the bed, still wearing his hat, listened to the boy rambling on and on about the grims before he took offense on. “Is most grim reapers short like you or is it just me,” word.

Taeil turned cold, he glared, his deadly aura spread evenly in his room it made Donghyuck smiled. “It’s a joke, learn how to take one will you, being so serious will make you look old you know,” the younger one said, looking around. “Although you’re probably a hundred years old by now… “

Taeil softened, the cold aura dissipates, he sat himself beside Donghyuck.

<>

It’s been hours since Taeil arrived and Donghyuck has been talking all day long, Taeil was just right there, in Donghyuck’s room, being invisible but to donghyuck. He strolled around Hyuck’s room.

Taeil knew from the man himself that he’s been stuck inside this room for most of his life, without Taeil himself even asking, maybe that boy just needed someone to talk to and Taeil didn’t mind it, he listens, though he looked like he’s not, all he said is a compilation of different sounding hm in response to Donghyuck’s weird and lame questions.

When the talk dies down he turned around to see Donghyuck absent-mindedly staring outside of his window, Taeil forgot of how fast time can fly when people is around him, it’s already sunset when he remembered how exactly the sun was up so bright just a few minutes ago, he think.

“Look, it’s sunset!” the boy exclaims, pointing outside of his window, though very-much abandoned at the very least Hyuck has a great view from this position, his bed placed exactly at the side of the window. “The time flies so fast huh,” it came out more like a whisper, but TAeil catches the words, it made him shifted his gaze to the boy who looks so happy yet so… off.

No one can befooled of when they payed attention to the dark circles below Donghyuck’s eyes, he’s been losing sleep. “When was the last time you slept and for how long?” it oddly bothers him, the thought that this man right here has been spending tiresome nights and no one really bothered to care, Donghyuck hummed. “About a week ago, four hours sleep.”

“What?”

Donghyuck smiled. “It’s no big deal, this has happened since forever, i’ve get used to it, usually i’d get only two hours or three, that’s an improvement you know.”

Taeil stared at the figure who sat still as he watch the sun slowly goes down, before he then sighs. “You should stop being so proactive and sleep,” Taeil waves his hand around, chanting a spell he had been using so people would thought of him as a dream and they’d fell asleep, but this time he’s using them to make Hyuck fell asleep and nothing else, while in the other hand, Donghyuck is a light sleeper, he hardly fall asleep but once he does he might just went into a hibernate and woke up two days after, well, that’s exaggerating, of course, but that’s a way to describe his bad occurring insomnia.

Maybe because it’s Taeil, maybe because he hasn’t been out for a while, the last time he remember it was still bright outside his window, but now its dim, the sky turned orange and he’s sleepy. “Did you cast a sleeping spell on me? Cause i felt sleepy,”

Taeil stepped closer to Donghyuck, watching the boy tucking himself to sleep.

When suddenly Taeil felt warmth wrapping around his fingers, he turned around so fast-shifting his gaze to the hand tugging on his fingers. “Can i hold you like this?” Donghyuck asks, no answers from Taeil.

He just let the boy be while holding his fingers, watching him slowly falling asleep.

He hadn’t realize something else had grown inside that cold ice-like heart of his that he himself finds it irrational to act like this.

After a while, Taeil left

<>

Tomorrow any other day, it’s just another day where the night turns to morning, nothing much.

After his parents abandoned him in this very room he didn’t expect anything to happen anymore, it’s been years long, so he gave up hoping for a miracle.

He rose from his bed glancing to his side laughing as he finds no one was waiting there, come on what did he even expect from a grim reaper? He thought to himself, his hands reaching to a button above his headrest, that button he uses to call someone to clean up for him, it’s a bit late, twelve in the afternoon. He gather himself to rose from his bed and walked to the bathroom.

Just like any other day he puked, though nothing come out from his mouth, he’s been nauseous for a whole week, puking air and watching more and more hair fall out of its roots, no surprise, the doctors only gave him regular medicines since he couldn’t afford more than that. He showers, change to a new clothes, when he went out of the bathroom he found no one and nothing but a sprig of flower suddenly exists on his side table. A _Moon_ flower.

Donghyuck furrowed in surprise. “What is this,” he thought, walking hurriedly to pick up the flower he only used to see online, it’s in his hand now, he knew about moon flowers, they smell nice at night and grew at night, Donghyuck examined the flower when he realized that theres a little paper tied to the stem.

_Your room kind of stinks so i hope this would help it at night,_ so the paper said, it made Donghyuck laughed. “What kind of reason is that?” he mumbled, before rumaging through his thing, finding something that he could use as a vase, anything could do, he doesn’t need the fancy ones.

Once he finds them, he filled one quarter of the vase with water and he putted it inside.

“Hello little company,” he said, kneeling as he stared into the vase now with a flower, he spoke to it as if the thing inside that bottle were a person, a living human being. “You're my friend now,” Donghyuck tilted his head giggling to himself, feeling stupid.

He rose, trying to find something else to do, he knew his assigned grim reaper must be around. He grabbed his jacket and his tube, getting out of that vvip room was easy, no one really cared about him after all.

He walked around until he find a familiar figure standing not so far from his sight, he’s getting out his death scythe, something might have happened down there cause Donghyuck have saw them once, touch them once, the thrilling feels and shiver it sent down to his spine was… odd but amazes him. He walked around the hallway until he stumbled upon an empty hall, sitting there, he didn’t know what was he doing until he found an odd looking _something_ not so far from him.

The odd figure looked… pale, disheveled, dark, as if consumed by something else he don’t know about. He was staring right back at Donghyuck, while Donghyuck suddenly reminded of what a grim reaper has told him about, this kind of soul is tainted with grudges and how he should, no matter what, avoid them if he ever stumbled upon it in any circumstances.

But Hyuck didn’t.

Instead he find a spot to sat while waiting for _anything_ , anything at all to happened, maybe something bad? Something good? He don’t care, his curiosity is killing him that he almost urges himself to step closer if only he didn’t remember about the reminder that one of the grim reapers have told him about.

Should he stay like this?

He really wanted to get closer though, took a step closer, it wouldn't hurt.

He think he had to—

He stopped himself when he felt a force pulling him away from that tainted soul, strong enough he felt himself flew, before hitting something he felt hard, he didn’t hit it hard though, and his head is okay, he just wondered who on earth would do that.

Until he sees a glimpse of a familiar death scythe, a familiar figure was walking forward, as if he’s ready to fight, maybe he is there to fight, fight the tainted soul that he had been watching on for he don’t know how long now, he kept feeling like the time just go forward when he’s contacting the other world.

He didn’t know what had just happened but then he heard a loud terrifying shriek along with a dark cloud surrounding the familiar figure and somehow he witnessed how the tainted soul got sucked by the deathly scythe he got a hold of. Donghyuck gazes in awe, that was amazing, well, until the familiar figure turned around frowning to his direction all he can think of is nothing but _oh shit_.

So that was Moon Taeil, and that was terrifying of him.

“What have crossed into your mind, Lee Donghyuck, a little birdie told me that he know you and you pretty much know about _not_ getting in contact with those kind of creature, what the fuck are you doing,” Taeil approaches him with a fast and wide steps, he’s indeed small, but how the fuck can he look so intimidating with that small figure? Donghyuck felt so small with him when Donghyuck is _literally_ staring down at him. “And why are you outside? This isn’t a time to be outside.”

Instead of answering those question another question popped out on his head. “Wait how did you find me? I didn’t remember you putting a tracker on my body?” he asks, and Taeil glared even harder, okay maybe speaking his thoughts out loud wasn't a good decision, donghyuck felt like he just choked on his saliva and so he clasps his lips together. “Sorry… but really how did you find me?”

In annoyance but sober enough to collect himself and the dark energy he might let out if he loses control, Taeil showed Donghyuck the infamous golden tinted paper that shone, it shone had fade for a little, but is still visible to the naked eyes as Donghyucks, he saw his name there, written, carefully written and is glowing. “This, it shone when you’re in danger,” Taeil said, before re-folding it into a square and putting it back to his own pocket. “How did you end up here?”

“I don’t know, i was strolling around the hospital and-- ah shit.”

Donghyuck didn’t know what causes it but he definitely haven’t had this kind of head pang for a while, he grasped his walking infusion feeling a dizziness hitting, Taeil stood in confusion, he didn’t know what to do while Donghyuck slowly falling on his knee, Taeil’s very first instinct is to withdraw his death scythe and approaches before Donghyuck eventually pass out. “Lee Donghyuck, Lee Donghyuck,” he called out, trying his best to keep him awake.

But all Donghyuck mutter is that Taeil had to get him back in his room before he finally passes out in Taeil’s arms.

<>

The second Donghyuck woke up from his sleep, it’s still the same emptiness in his room except that he smelled something, something nice that he couldn’t describe, he blinked a few times only to realize that he’s awake in the middle of the night, cause it’s pitch black with just a dim light resourcing from another window and a faint feeling of a breeze. Donghyuck turned around to see Taeil in his all-black attire, smoking as his body leans to the outside of the window, it only took Taeil a single glance to realize that Donghyuck has awoken from his sleep. “You’re awake already, that took you a day,” he said, all Donghyuck do to response is a chuckle, Taeil turned away, facing the source of faint light he’d been seeing earlier. “It’s full moon tonight,” he said.

So that’s why the faint light seems brighter than usual, Donghyuck thought to himself, before gathered himself to pull away the curtains that covered his window, from blocking his view, he did got greeted with a big bright full moon, the moon shone the flower on his side table, and oh! Would you look at that, perhaps someone had the chance to visit and added one more flower to his vase, he smiled again. “Taeil did you add the flowers to my vase?” he asks, Taeil just stayed quiet,as always, he didn’t do anything in response to his question and it made Donghyuck chuckled, thinking that it might be him who sent all of this unbeknownst to him. “So it is you, thanks,” he said.

There’s three flowers inside the vase now.

He glances to Taeil again, their eyes meet each other, maybe Taeil meant to stare to another thing and not him but his gaze indeed stopped at him, Donghyuck have never thought about it but the name ‘moon’ really does suits him, Taeil, he mean, face as cold as ice when he looked at him but there’s a faint hint of… something else that he can’t quite reach what of, he thought, did the grim reapers named him after the moon after seeing how he looked when the moonlight lit his face? Or did they named him after the moon only because of his last name is Moon, he wonder. “Have you ever thought that you fitted the name moon? You fit it like you own the moon or maybe you’re the moon itself.”

Taeil scoffs. “Stop spouting nonsense, what are you even on about? Go to sleep, it’ll help you get better tomorrow,” he said, chanting the same sleeping spell to make him sleep, Donghyuck’s eyes started to get heavy, he tucked himself to bed but not yet closing his eyes. “Taeil can i hold you again?” what an odd request, he had been asking the same question for more than once now, he wonder, what does his hand do that it made Donghyuck went to sleep as soon as he touches his fingers, took a little bit time for Taeil to took Donghyuck’s hand that had been reaching out to his direction, this time Taeil came prepared, he brought a chair closer to him so he don’t have to be standing all the time, he took over Donghyuck’s hand, holding them loose.

Donghyuck still haven’t yet closing his eyes to sleep even though he had already tucked himself to bed, he chooses to observe Taeil’s face for a while instead, his other hand reaches out to touch it features making Taeil flinch but not enough to make him jump avoiding Hyuck’s touch, he touches Taeil’s nose, down to the chin passes the lips, then up to his eyes, little touches that barely even doing anything, Taeil’s eyes furrowed. “What are you doing?” he asks, making Donghyuck flinches with his movement his sleepy voice took over. “Sorry… i wasn’t planning to make you uncomfortable,” he said, he brought his hand down to his body, giggling. “You looked really pretty when the moon shines on you like that though…”

“Excuse me what?”

“Pretty… like the moon itself,” the grim reaper can feel by how Hyuck’s grip loosened on his finger but his unexpected words freezes him. “Maybe that’s why… you’re the moon… and not anybody else…” the boy’s voice falter as he fell to sleep, the spell is working, letting him rest once again before another tiring day of living.

But Taeil’s gaze dropped to the loosely gripping hand on his finger.

He wonder why is he doing this, why does he kept on doing this useless thing while he can just keep going on invisible and erases Donghyuck’s memory about him like how he did with any other person, but he didn’t, he let Donghyuck kept the memories about him, maybe because he pitied him, or maybe because of anything else, maybe because he knew how it feels like to needing company. Why did he care though.

If two days ago he ushered himself away from Donghyuck, now he didn’t.

He stayed there, until the peak of almost sunrise, he left, leaving Donghyuck another moon flower on his vase.

<>

It’s not long after Donghyuck leave his room, he found Taeil leaning on the wall of his room, not wearing his hat. “Oh! Taeil!” the cheerful tone he lets out made him snorts, he just think it’s funny, who else on earth would sounds this happy when meeting a goddamn grim reaper of his own? No one, only Lee Donghyuck, this weird creature right here whose eyes lighten up after he sense his presence near. “You’re here! Without your hat! What are you doing here? And oh! Did you took upon your human form to visit me today? Ooh so this is how normal you could look like… you just like any other human i’ve seen that’s fun!”

“Excuse me now mister what do you even think i looked like? I’m always in my human form, even when i’m a grim reaper,” Taeil rolled his eyes, he rose, standing upright and felt so little standing beside this fragile but _fucking_ tall human being, he felt like it’s unfair, Taeil has everything except one, height, and maybe happiness, that doesn’t really matter though he found life as a simple inconvenience until he decides to retire and either ascend or live his remainin life a fully human being. He saw how Donghyuck’s eyes shaped a moon crest when he laughed, since when did he did that? That’s cute, enough to make a little smirk appear on his face.

Unfortunately for Donghyuck, he couldn’t see him smiling because Taeil was covering his face.

“So what are you doing here?” Donghyuck repeated his question, reminding Taeil of what did he wanted to do all along, he pulled out something similar to his hat and put it on Donghyuck’s head, making Donghyuck flinch in confusion, he tried to take a look above of what on earth is he wearing. “What--”

“No time to explain, follow me,”

Donghyuck realizes how all of a sudden all of the grim reapers attention were drawn to him and Taeil, they walked down the halls passing by numerous humans, souls, and reapers, not even a single soul budge to glance at him like how people would everytime he passes by, this is quite fun, he giggles behind Taeil and continues to walk following the man behind. They eventually stopped at the gates of the hospital. “Okay so, hear me out,” Taeil said, pointing to the hat he’s wearing. “I will gave you this, my old invisibility hat, until the 24th day--”

“Woah what? This is your invisibility hat? So i’m pretty much invisible now? Oh my god this is so cool!” out of excitement Donghyuck cut Taeil’s sentence, he spun himself around for a while, leaving Taeil with his half open lips with sentences hanging to be said, Taeil closed them after seeing Donghyuck fleeing around with both of his hands to the side. “Wee look at me! I’m invisible! Doctor look i’m invisible!” usual reaction, but taeil find it much more endearing when it comes to Lee Donghyuck, him fooling around with the nearby staffs like putting leaves on their heads and scaring them off, there’s a bit of Taeil’s conscience he shouldn’t do all of them, but Taeil let him be, letting donghyuck made one by one of the staffs run with fear as he watches from the side.

Donghyuck glances to the side to find Taeil laughed aloud, it did something to his poor heart, watching an unusual view of him laughing aloud and how he crouches to the ground, he felt his heart palpitating faster and faster, oh god, if he don’t do something he might as well ended up lying on the ground like that time he did. He cleared his throat, trying to do _anything_ at all to make that man smile even wider, or maybe laugh even harder, anything to see the moon shone its light and smile.

It’s all he need.

After a while clowning around, Donghyuck returned to Taeil with a bright smile, displaying how much fun he just had, no wonder he’d smile that big, Taeil is back with his straight face again, clearing his throat so he can keep his straight face still in front of the boy. “So, do you know what are we gonna do today that i bring you outside with me?” Taeil is back with his question, the younger, obviously shook his head, Taeil inhales before he continued his words. “I’m gonna take you outside to do the things you want to do before you died, we have twenty days left because the first four we spent uselessly, so what are we gonna do today?”

Donghyuck’s eyes widen. “We gonna… do everything that i want to do before i go? Are you for real?” his eyes spoke excitement. “I can make you go and pay for everything i want, right? Right now?” right now, Donghyuck is jumping in excitement, Taeil couldn’t imagine just how long has he been stuck there exactly, locked up with nowhere to go to, it suddenly aches him to imagine so. He nodded in response, half regretting this impulsive wish and decision to take him out for the whole week. “Yes, you’re right.”

And so there they goes, strolling around the city, Taeil let the boy do anything he wanted, but he never thought of the smallest little thing he does, when Donghyuck passes by a cat, he took his time to crouches and run to the closest food stand, buying something for the stranded cat to eat. When Donghyuck passes by a bubble blower he asks Taeil to buy it and blow them for him. “You want me to buy this?” the grim reaper make sure that he heard the boy right, Donghyuck, of course, nodded right away.

They walked to a nearest park and blow them bubble there.

Donghyuck watches one by one popped to thin air, one appear and one popped, it was always the same thing over and over again but Donghyuck had already forgotten of how much fun he has watching the bubbles pop like this when he was still a kid, he felt like when he’s with Taeil he can rewind the clock, anytime he wants. Donghyuck stared at one bubble that hasn’t popped and flew over to his direction, inches away to his nose, he brought his finger up to pop it but then, _pop!_ The bubble popped right in front of his nose, it made him flinch, and giggling like a child right after.

Taeil haven’t seen this kind of childishness for a long time, it’s endearing to watch that he forgot about blowing the bubbles and decided to stand and watch the boy giggles instead, unconsciously a smile was formed on his cold and straight face, watching the boy trying to push away one by one the bubble that might flew to his direction, by pushing away Taeil meant by blowing them away, it’s cute, so he walked over to him handing over the bubble blower kit.

Donghyuck lifted his face seeing a weirdly smiling Taeil. “Here, you might want to blow them yourself,” Taeil said, as then he sat beside him watching the boy contemplating on whether or not should he blow them himself or not, he don’t know, it’s quite childish of him to do these, he don’t want to embarrass himself any further.

But Taeil held him back. “No one is watching you, it’s only me and i don’t mind being treated like a half mad man so just do it, i know you want to do it,” he said, with an oddly soft tone that didn’t come out forcibly, rather it came out natural, as if assuring him that it’s okay to act childish once in a very while after being locked up for years inside the very same room and being left to rot to die in twenty days, Taeil do genuinely think Donghyuck deserves this, Donghyuck deserves to act like a kid for once.

Then Taeil payed attention to how Donghyuck, with a wide smile on his face, excitedly blowing all the bubbles and watching them flew before they pop, one by one.

Suddenly the dull earth looks pretty in Taeil’s eyes.

Suddenly he felt like something changed and someone drop a tint of colour to his dark and dull life that he had never had.

And Taeil liked it.

<>

They spent most of their days together after.

They went to the sea, they went to the amusement park, they went to buy shit, they did a lot of stuff together. At this point Taeil opened up, little by little, while Donghyuck stayed the same but happier, and that is all he wants, all Taeil need is to watch him smile and then die happily right after, he wanted Donghyuck to leave with no regrets of what not he should do when he was still alive and well.

Donghyuck, he wanted to give Donghyuck the life he had lost for years because he was stuck inside that room for so long, he literally rotted there.

Now Taeil rarely left after Donghyuck fell asleep, he rarely leave his seat, whenever Donghyuck woke up late at night he’d find that man staring outside directly at the moon and Donghyuck would stay to watch until he feel like falling back to sleep, since when Taeil is there, no nightmares scary enough to haunt him cause he’s seen enough to concluded that this one veteran grim reaper right here is scarier than any of the weird nightmares he’d normally had. It became a habit of them then, Taeil don’t even need to cast a spell on Donghyuck to made him fall asleep, all Donghyuck needs is a prove of company and Taeil’s finger is more than enough to do such.

  
  


Every passing grim reapers seeing them together would gaze in awe, that ones as cold as the infamous Moon Taeil is able to shown such expression to ones that is his own assigned soul, who would’ve thought that the god might have its own reason sending someone like him after living a bland and dull life for god-knows how long have he stayed to watch the generation grow. They watch as if something splatter some colour and brightness to the veteran grim reaper’s life, as if someone casted a spell on him that man smiled so genuinely everyone would stop and freeze to witness.

Maybe that kid is indeed the so-called only miracle that Taeil needed, so that he could learn to appreciate it, to recognize and to learn how beautiful life is to be thrown away just like that.

Whilst Donghyuck find a new source of light in his life, Taeil found something that could outshone the real sun himself, Lee Donghyuck.

_His sun._

What a cheeky nickname he thought to himself as he watches the boy not so far away from him living the life he had never lived before, he make friends, he talked, he _lived_ so cheerfully enough that it’s unbelievable to Taeil’s demise that this boy wouldn’t walk on this earth any longer soon enough.

Ah, yes, that’s right, how little time they has.

“Taeil!” he heard a voice calling, that boy with a smile so blindingly bright is waving his hand to him, how could he not smile afterwards? He stood from his seat, approaching Donghyuck and his new friends. “I want to introduce you to my new friends, this is Jeno, and this is Renjun, that over there is Mark with his boyfriend Xuxi,” he listened attentively as Donghyuck listed on and on about his new friends, he smiled as he introduces himself as _Moon Taeil,_ _Donghyuck’s guardian_. Never thought he’d label himself that in a span of a week.

When he looked around, he felt as if Donghyuck were introducing him into a new kind of world he had never lay a finger on, a new world where everything shine so brightly he’d wonder if this is actually the world he’s been living on for more than a thousand years. Never thought he’d experienced something more than just anger and compilation of outrages, never thought he’d be this… happy.

Taeil walked Donghyuck back to the hospital, on their way back Donghyuck bought ice cream for the two of them. “Pretty sure old-fashioned veterans like you had never lay a finger on new ice cream tastes like these, try it,” Donghyuck said, Taeil doubted it’d taste good because it looks weird, tosca coloured food with some dots, or people might call them, choco chips, whatever that is he doubted that this tosca-coloured food would taste good, so he waited for Donghyuck to finish his, only to find him squinting and scrunching his nose, the expression made Taeil laugh. “Shoot, I thought it’d taste good, sorry, just throw it away,” he said later on, feeling sorry, mayhaps.

Taeil scoffs. “I haven’t even lay a finger on this food, let me tastes it for a bit,” he said, tasting the ice cream. Donghyuck watches in caution, afraid he might throw up after tasting this _so badly made_ choco mint ice cream, when Donghyuck saw how Taeil’s muscles seems to tense up, his unconscious fight or flight mode took over him. And he re-did what he saw Mark and his boyfriend did back then.

It’s not hard, because Taeil is smaller than him.

He stole a quick kiss.

Taeil froze.

Donghyuck couldn’t even comprehend how loud his thoughts is right now or-or how his face is probably flushed red or how all he can think about him kissing the older boy, his moon, _his_ moon oh god that feels weird, but right, Donghyuck’s little jump is indicating how his heart palpitated over normal and how he just wanted to run for his life instead of standing awkwardly like this, Donghyuck fidgets out of nervousness. “I just… um… i-i saw how Mark and his boyfriend kissed… and i uh… i just wondered how’d… it feel… if i did it with you…”

Taeil didn’t know how to react, he stared blankly contemplating what should he do in this state, watching how cutely Donghyuck fidgeted back and forth with little jumps he did out of nervousness, how the both of his hands fiddle with one another, Taeil couldn’t listen to any kind of explanation that boy trying to make, his conscious said return the kiss, his brain said no, he didn’t know what to believe, his head is spinning around when then he finally snaps out of his thoughts. “Ah fuck it, fuck this, fuck norms,”

Donghyuck stops in confusion, but then it all passes by so. Fast.

He felt how strong Taeil’s grip is on his wrist, how Taeil pulled him closer and how Taeil guide him to meet his, ecstatic is an understatement, Donghyuck could feel his stomache whirl when the tip of his lips re connect with Taeil’s lips.

Earlier, he couldn’t savor the moment, but now he do, the feeling of how kisses can be this soft, the feeling that his heart can jumped at any time worsened by the fact that this might just worsened his head pangs but he could care less, right now all Donghyuck could think about is how they were strangling each other, on the streets, under the street lights, his lips crashing with Taeil.

For a moment that felt like forever, they finally broke off the kiss. And were greeted by cherry blossoms even though it isn’t even spring right now, it’s fall, when Donghyuck looked around, the cherry blossoms perfected the beautiful orange on the sky, the sun is going down while moon is already in its position, it’s view made Taeil giggled softly, Donghyuck turned around in curiosity. “What’s so funny?” he asks.

Taeil shook his head. “I just remember an old friend saying that sunsets is the only time sun can visibly seen reunite with its long lost lover, when it’s crescent the moon peek through the clouds, and when its full moon sacrificed everything it had to reunite with the sun.” the grim reaper exclaimed, with a soft smile on his face he made Donghyuck’s heart rate palpitated even more than how he did when they connected their lips, Donghyuck then thought of something.

“What about eclipse?”

Taeil turned quiet, took him time before he shifts his gaze to Donghyuck and smiled. “When it’s eclipse, it’s the only time the sun can be one with his lover the moon, no one knows this, but they shared a lovely story when it’s eclipse, before then Moon has to retreat back so the sun can do his job lighting the whole world,” it’s not a saying of his old friend, Taeil also wonders how can he made such words coming out of his lips as he watches _his_ sun turned flushed red averting his gaze from Taeil. “You spoke as if you were talking about someone,” Donghyuck said, exclaimed.

The grim reaper did nothing to disagree, he only scoffs, taking Hyuck’s hand to his grasp this time with their fingers intertwined with each other.

He did, he _was_ talking about someone.

And Taeil didn’t need to talk about it out loud cause, by now, even god himself know who was he talking about.

<>

Few days later Donghyuck woke up feeling that his grip has loosened, Taeil were no where to be found, oddly.

But he smiled, he’s sure that Taeil would came back at the end of the day and they’d went through the day as they usually would, strolling around the city, doing everything he wanted before his time came, so that when Donghyuck left, he left with no regrets.

Lately he has been receiving guests, Mark and his boyfriend visited, Jeno and a few of his acquaintances, even Mark brought along his older brother, Taeyong, he’d been receiving many guests and he felt like the once lonely and dark world he once were grasped in were just a dream, he’d talked all day until they left because the visiting time was over.

“I heard from Taeil you liked ice creams, so i brought this along for you, eat as much as you want,” Taeyong is an ice cream shop owner, he’d often brought him ice creams along with sunflowers because Taeyong’s boyfriend is just happens to be a flower shop owner. Donghyuck accepted them with open arms. “Thank you! I’d put them in my vase, as always!” Donghyuck would always said, taking a look at the never-changing seven stems of moon flowers, they reminded him of Taeil and his never-ending sweet attitudes towards him.

Today, his room were crowded with people and nurses started to coming in regularly, checking him out, unusual of them to be real honest, but Donghyuck shrugs the thought away, he just can’t wait for Taeil to return already and Taeil always did, right before the sunsets, Donghyuck would find him leaning in the corner of his room with a tug of smile on his face.

After they leave, Taeil approaches. “You’ve been leaving lately, is there something you need to take care of? I miss you…” Donghyuck has always been the clingy ones, it somehow comply and fitted with the lonewolf image Taeil had for his entire life, Taeil would cradle him in his embrace afterwards, they’d lie in the same bed all day watching the sunsets together as they talked about things that happened when one was away. “When will we have time to stroll again? I have something i want to do but it had to wait until the very end of my time,” Donghyuck asks, in an oddly casual tone in Taeils ear, they had always been talking about this though so Taeil furrowed his eyebrows realizing what a weird thought he just had.

“Taeil? My moon are you listening?”

“Hm?”

Ah, here he goes, Donghyuck thought, maybe Taeil just had some trouble with his work or what-not, they don’t really talk about the grim reapers as much as they used to eversince, but Donghyuck is always surely be there to listen to his complaints, _if_ only he did, the matter is Taeil rarely does, maybe it’s a matter of how long has he been working as a grim reaper in result of something else greater, if Taeil can say it’s like, he’s owing the _god_ then he is, voluntarily working as a grim reaper is something more special than having it as a lifetime punishment. “You know you can whine to me, right my Moon? What’s wrong? You seems so off these days i’m worried,” Donghyuck pulled himself away, turning to Taeil and, _god_ when will this man stop being so pretty all the time.

Taeil kept Donghyuck’s fingers in his grasp, he starting to realize what had gone wrong he started to became paranoid for something so conventional as in someone elses death, Taeil averted his gaze, he shook his head. “Nothing sweetheart, i’m alright,” he _tried_ to brushes off the worriness in Donghyuck’s eyes, cupping its face. “Maybe i’m just tired,” denial, that’s a word that can describe them right now, the irrational fear that kept him going _no i can’t be feeling like this_.

Donghyuck sighs, but he didn’t expect Taeil to suddenly rests his head on Donghyuck’s shoulder. “Let me… stayed like this for a while,” Taeil said, with an exhausted tone, Donghyuck’s eyes soften, he hugged him sending him all the comfort he probably needs tonight, kissing the tip of his head, letting him sighs heavily onto the crook of his neck.

Donghyuck had no idea what may going on inside Taeil’s mind but he did feel the need to assure him that everything will be alright.

At least, that’s what the both of them trying to believe right now.

That in the end of the day they would be just fine, although its justs several day until the very _fated_ day comes.

Maybe that’s what Taeil is afraid of, afraid of finally having to let go to something that gave him a tad bit but bright light after so long he stayed in grasps inside a world so dark he didn’t even appreciate anything anymore.

But for now he’d like to believe that they’d be okay, at least until that day comes.

<>

Taeil started to disappearing every now and then, out of nowhere, without any precaution he just did.

Donghyuck feared that he’d be overwhelming, he always do and with Taeil treating him this way isn’t helping him in any way, at all, especially near the _fated_ day, he needed Taeil to assure him but what can he do when the man isn’t even there to fulfill the unspeakable promise they once made, or maybe it’s just him and his blindingly whipped ass, who knows.

But he may can gave his credits to the gods for giving him the bestest of friends that would listen to his whines and whatnots, some say have faith on Taeil and some says that he should interrogate him if he really is curious, but it’s only been two days, it might not be as special as he thought it was.

In the end, they thought that it might be best for them not to talk about Taeil anymore.

“Talking about him he remind me of an old folk people back in my hometown used to tell,” Jeno was fast to move topics. “There’s a man who lived his life serving as the god’s servant in exchange for his loved ones life or whatsoever, i forgot about the story but i swear many people would feel bad about them,” Jeno was picking on his nose made Donghyuck giving him the stank eye before he brushes it off and asks. “That’s an old folk?”

“Yeah, it also a tale on why would moon often appear when its sunsets.”

Donghyuck knew as soon as Jeno mentioned the sunsets, this conversation is going nowhere but about Taeil, the moon, and Moon Taeil. Have gotten sick over everything Taeil, Donghyuck rose from his seat grabbing his jacket and took a stroll around the hospital alone, meeting numerous amount of grim reapers on his way. “Good to see you well, Lee Donghyuck,” they’d often say, at this point he could name every kind of soul he had met, and this one is no different than the ones he keep meeting. He crouched so his eyes can level with the kid’s eyes. “You’ll be fine, brother reaper here is to safely accompany you to a better place,” he spoke as if he was speaking with a living being, well, technically he is, but not really.

Donghyuck rummages through his pocket finding a pile of candies stuck there, ah, maybe from their latest date that was four days ago, Donghyuck thought to himself and how pathetic he looked right now. “Here, have one of these, you like candies, right?” Donghyuck do realize that souls technically can’t touch what humans have in their mortal world, but since Taeil touched these, he’s sure that the kid can pick it up and eat it just like how he would in the mortal world. It was chocolate flavoured candy, kid’s favorite. “You should gave the other kids these too while you’re at it, the kids are staring,” the Grim reaper nudges to the crowd behind him, making Donghyuck realizes his generosity became his mistake, kind of, he laughed. “Yeah, you’re right, maybe i should,” Donghyuck then said.

It took a long time before the candy finally ran out and the kids letting go of the fact that he ran out of flavoured candies, one grim reaper stopped by to talk to him. “You’re… ah i didn’t need to ask didn’t i, nice to meet you Donghyuck!” the grim reaper said, the boy scoffs. “How come my name was known by every single grim reapers i’ve meet today? This unnecessary attention is odd…” Donghyuck scratches the back of his non-itching neck, feeling awkward because of the sudden fame he got from the soul-takers. The grim reapers laughed aloud. “It’s a normal thing, you got the whole headquarter’s attention all on you mister Lee, besides, it’s not a bad thing,” the grim reaper said. “My assigned soul will be arriving at any minute, i better make this fast-- oh!”

That little odd oh at the end of the sentence made Donghyuck tilting his head, he flinched when the grim reaper held out his hand and pressed its fingers on his forehead.

“What is this, you seemed to get better, you’ve got five more days to live, why is your condition… alleviating instead?”

Donghyuck’s turn to be confused, he thought that it’s odd he haven’t really feel nauseous recently despite the fact that it’s five days counting down to his day, the boy freezes as then he tilted his head. “Wh- what… what was that suppose to mean? I’m getting better… ?” his tone pledges innocence, the grim reaper thought. That means whatever someone did, or something did to him that made his countdown suddenly go up, Donghyuck has no idea of it.

Then the grim reaper thought of the only person who’d do this. His eyes widened, he looked away, scanning his surroundings for possible sudden appearance of that man, nothing really change except the weather gets warmer because lesser Grim reapers stayed, most of them got back to the head quarters.

“ _Hes a motherfucking mad man_ …”

unbeknownst to himself the grim reaper, he shouted his thoughts out loud in the ancient language that only grim reapers and the creature above uses to communicate with the superior beings other than the god himself, making Donghyuck furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, grim reaper jumped after he acknowledges that he spoke aloud. “Ah sorry, i shouldn’t speak of it out loud,” the grim reaper said, beginning to step away. “I’m afraid our conversation has to end here now, Lee Donghyuck i got a job to do.”

Rather than a job, he postponed his escortment time and teleported to the headquarters.

_He need to find Moon Taeil and his mad shit that he predict Taeil about to do._

  
  


<>

  
  


Nothing surprise you more than a sudden choke when you're just about to hit your main goal coming right here, that's what happened with Taeil, and him in the air now.

Think of it as a duel, mayhaps, a duel where in the beginning Taeil didn't budge before suddenly pinning back the one who chokes him down to the ground, the other colleagues were there to watch and Moon Taeil has had more than enough. "What's with you? Huh? What's with you so brave and strong for me today that you dont show respect to someone who's technically older than you?" the ground shrieks and cracked as he put so much power but not enough to accidentally killed him, if you'd see him, his eyes is glowing silver, he was grinning, and he's technically glowing.

And that's exactly what the grim reaper wanted, his main goal, draining out the powers from Taeil, with each push Taeil became more and more powerful he smiled even wider.

He didn’t mean any harm, he just wanted to stop Taeil and his well-known impromptu decisive tendency, the grim reaper smiled, fuelling the explosive anger that people knew Taeil has, making him go merciless, and he thought he'd die before a name calling after them, along with a voice strong enough to make the thunders roar.

_"Enough! The two of you, Moon, Jungwoo,"_

That snaps out the duelling duo making the glow on Taeil's body stop, Taeil withdraw from Jungwoo, the grim reaper. "Sorry, i lost control of myself," he said, not begging for forgiveness but excusing his actions, Jungwoo glanced at his shining hands and to the breezes that would almost made fall feels like hard-core winter due to its strong powerful cold breeze. "I think you need to calm down if you don't want your actions to affects the other world, Moon, it could be dangerous for your _dying_ lover," Jungwoo watch all of his words, including that one, the one people said to not be mentioned in front of the veteran grim reaper triggered a stronger breeze around the area.

But Taeil exhales, attempting on calming himself down, he realizes Jungwoo left an odd scent he feels familiar with. "Moon flower…" the man murmur, turning around to Jungwoo. "You met him, don't you?" it's not that hard to guess, nor is it hard to recognize that Taeil has fallen in love with his assigned soul, that's the worst that can happen to one grim reaper, and it had to happen to a veteran ones, like Moon Taeil. Jungwoo nodded, his arms motioned to wrap himself, not due to the cold due to that Taeil remind him of himself, and maybe that’s why he ushered himself after the Moon, to stop him from doing _anything_ that might have crossed paths with his mind. “You won’t do it, right?” so Jungwoo asks, with no context, he knew Taeil would catch up immediately. “He’s not worth any sacrifices that you’d made, so don’t.”

Moon Taeil have heard those kind of sentences since ever he fell in love with the sun, so he’s not surprised. “Is that why you advanced against me Woo? Because of this?” he chuckled, the chuckle came out weakly as Taeil looked up to be greeted with Sunsets, he smiled. “There’s where you’re wrong, kid,” he rose his hand, making a circle shape with both his thumb and point finger and framed the settling Sun who met the peeking Moon, Jungwoo shifted his gaze, facing the sadly smiling Moon Taeil.

When Jungwoo shifted away he can see falling cherry blossom petals that melt down with the snow, he reaches his hand, trying to catch the two, whilst then he only find a pole of cold melted snow and a cherry blossom petal prettily landing on his palm. He looked up to Taeil, his hand has withdraw to its place.

“Lee Donghyuck worth, more than anything i’ve witness the centuries i’ve lived in.”

<>

Hoping the pitch black sky could cover up for his existence, Taeil hid in the corner of Donghyuck’s room, watching him rummaging through his things while he pinned his phone in between the side of his head and his shoulder. Most likely he’s talking to either Renjun or Jeno, who knows, mayhaps the both of them can do it too, he smiled so bright, like he used to. Like how he can shone the whole universe with his bright smile alone, sometimes Taeil even wonder if that’s the reason his parents locked him up inside this place for years long.

Watching Lee Donghyuck is like watching how spring turned summer, at night he turned to fall before then staying as winter long before he turned to spring again, ah, poetic words alone cannot describe how he felt and how happy he is seeing him all alive and well. Taeil waited for him to fall to sleep before revealing himself to the moonlight who used to lit his face well, the kind of lit that Donghyuck liked, the kind of light that made Donghyuck thought of him as the Moon, he watches the clock goes up and up, he watch him tucking himself to sleep.

And that’s when he came out, with a sprig of Donghyuck’s favorite moon flower, he realizes most of them still alive, thanks to Donghyuck’s care, well, unfortunately he had to add another to declare that he visited before then he left, he stayed in the spot for a while, examining the Moon Flowers he have been giving him while he was away, how did Donghyuck felt? Did he misses him? Did Donghyuck thought of him whenever the moon came whenever it’s half, a crescent, or just happens to shone brightly as the full big bright moon, did the thought of him ever passes through Donghyuck’s mind?

Taeil brushes off the thought, and he was about to take his leave before then, he felt something held him back.

A tug on his clothes.

Donghyuck’s awake.

“It’s been a while since i saw your face, won’t you turn around? I miss you a lot,” Donghyuck’s voice betrayed him, his voice muffles with the tears he had been holding back. He took a deep sigh before tugging a little harder. “Taeil, Moon Taeil, won’t you face me for a second?” Taeil would, he would, but it’d make it harder for him to do whatever he’s about to be doing, it’ll be harder for him to let Donghyuck go, a day has passed and its Donghyuck’s four more days left to live, he couldn’t bear to look at Donghyuck in the eyes and see how actually scared he is of dying. He heard a small creaking and arms wrapping around his hips, a thud made by Donghyuck’s contact. “I really… really want to tell you about everything that had happened in the past few days… i want us to cuddle as we faces the moon, i won’t be too much, i held myself back just, please, stay, for only tonight.”

He felt how Donghyuck shudder against his back. “I’m… i’m scared, okay? I got less and less time to do things i want with you… i wanted to go for a ride together and we can visit wherever you want, i want to taste that bad ice cream again with you, i…” Taeil was helpless, could he actually do anything at all? Can he? Can he beg the divinity to add some more time to his sun’s life and let him grow old with everything he wanted to do? Taeil’s hand motioned over Donghyuck’s palm, he hold it for a while, letting the silence took over and it’d be only the two of them, with the moon brightly shining outside.

Donghyuck cried like that, feeling the warmth of his love like there’s no other day, all Taeil could do is saying those. “I’m sorry,” and “It’d be okay, i promise you it’d be okay by the time i return, i promise you.”

They didn’t share a kiss, only a hug and a brush on the back of Donghyuck’s hand, but in Donghyuck’s opinion, it’s enough, even if Taeil decide that they can’t face each other again one day at least Donghyuck could still feel the warmth of his moon’s fingers.

Not long after that, Taeil fades, Donghyuck fell asleep.

<>

Taeil was surprised when he found Johnny suddenly barging in into his office with a shocked face, Taeil spare him a glance, and then back to organizing his things ignoring the loud wide steps Johnny took to get to him. Johnny’s face was flushed red and he looked angry, maybe he have heard, maybe it’s about something else, who knows.

Johnny stopped Taeil by gripping his hand, hard enough, but not enough to hurt him, his breath hitching as if he was holding himself back. “You… is what i heard true?” the veteran grim reaper didn’t pay attention to his words but to his shaky grip on his wrist, Taeil glanced at that big shaky hands before sighing. “You should calm yourself down first, whatever shit you have heard that must’ve fucked you up real bad that it made you tremble like this,” cold, as always, Taeil never change, but Johnny can’t believe that man, he scoffs hard. “What’s gotten into you, Moon? Why all of a sudden- why did you- Moon Taeil why-”

“That’s none of your business, living for more than three centuries you should have known that by now, that whatever decision i made, will not be affiliated nor would it affect you in any way, i’m free to make my decision what’s your problem?”

“Moon Taeil how could you not consider my feelings before you make such decision!?”

  
  
“Because i thought you didn’t care and we ended years ago, damn that Johnny get over with it! it has been a century for fuck sake!”

A rang on Taeil's Phone was what stopped the fight between the two of them, Taeil turned away with a heavy sigh. “Don’t meet me until you collect yourself, Johnny, now please, i need a time alone and you just walked in my cleaning session.”

Johnny took his leave, Taeil took a little time before checking up on his phone on who’s calling him at this hour, the hospital. It triggers a little panic in his head but he decided to call back. “Hello? This is Moon Taeil,” he said, introducing his full name. Nothing was heard except a bunch of nurse and doctors shouting each others name and hospital ambience in the background, not long until a nurse picked up and said “We just wanted to inform you that Lee Donghyuck’s condition has rapidly increases! And that we’re ready to give him the chemotherapy in a few minutes,” the voice sounds excited, relief, Taeil don’t know. “And we would like to say thank you for your cooperation, mister Moon.”

No one knows, but Taeil felt like his world had just stopped for a while, his heart heave with relief and all those sorts of things he could not describe, he smiles. “Thank you, thank you so much for informing me.”

God stays true to his words.

He fulfilled his promise.

Taeil drags out the golden tinted paper that has stayed inside his cupboard for a long time now, looking at it, he blow, the golden tinted paper turned into ashes, golden ashes.

He did it.


	2. the moon had to sacrifice itself to let the sun shone its light

Donghyuck thought he couldn’t get more happier.

When he got out of that therapy room he saw Taeil without his usual black attire, Taeil wore white today, and his hair was up, shown his forehead, Taeil’s face was litting up and bright that it made Donghyuck couldn’t contain himself any further so he ran to Taeil’s direction, hugging him. Taeil’s giggly laugh was one he missed the most when they were apart, he didn’t even know Taeil was literally that strong to spun him around, maybe they were right, don’t judge ones strength by height.

When Taeil stopped, the both of them stopped to look in each other’s eyes, Donghyuck feels like spring, he didn’t know if theres a way to explain but he did. He bowed down to steal a little kiss from Taeil, retreating with a wide smile on his face. “I miss you,” he said, shortly, at this point they don’t even care if there’s people watching. “I want to tell you so much things have happened, and you see that right? The room behind me is a therapy room! Therapy room!” Taeil took a little too much attention to Donghyuck’s expression, he saw how his face lighten up and how bubbly Donghyuck is.

He hasn’t forgotten about how endearing that man is in his eyes, Lee Donghyuck and those stars in his eyes, Taeil smiled, pulling the boy a step closer to kiss him.

Donghyuck freezes, not that he’s not happy, he’s surprised, Taeil is not one man with many surprises and he just did. That. He felt like his stomach swirled in happiness, his cheek warmed, he held back his big wide smile that got even wider along with a soft giggle his Moon let out, Taeil just can’t help it today. “Pretty, my pretty Sun is so happy today,” Taeil said, his fingers running through Donghyuck’s head, feeling the growing roots of his hair, Taeil chuckled. “Your condition is getting so much better than i’ve expected,” Taeil said. “I’m so happy.”

There’s a weird… feeling inside Hyuck’s chest, although he can’t quite figure out what that is he brushes it off, he couldn’t let this weird gut in his chest ruin his whole day. Donghyuck smiled even wider, he didn’t feel headaches as usual, he didn’t feel… anything bad, at all, maybe it’s a spell Taeil usually casted on him, maybe it’s him, he never knew. Donghyuck puffed his cheeks, awkwardly moving around because he didn’t know what to do.

Cause,  _ god _ , this man looks so enchantingly beautiful.

Taei didn’t bring any of his grim attire, he pulled Donghyuck along with him and walked through the crowded mass on the check-up counter, they got out of the hospital. “What are we going to do today? You’re my prince for a whole day,” Taeil said, his arm waving around showing the whole field and directions of which direction they can leave. Donghyuck didn’t think of anything else. “I have a place where i would like to go before we start going around, let me show you the way,” Donghyuck said.

He took Taeil’s hand, leading him on.

They went to a columbarium with a bus, don’t ask how they managed to ignore the massive amount of stare surrounding them when all they did was cuddling and holding hands on their way to the columbarium. Donghyuck led Taeil to a vase, he can feel how Donghyuck started to tear up. “Mom… i’m here, i’m sorry it took time… now i can go here whenever i want!” he said, his voice cracking. “This… the man right here is… this is my one and only moon, the one who light up my life… who found me in the darkness and paint me with various colours i have never even lay a single finger on,” Taei suddenly felt the grip on his hand tighten, hardened, he shifted his eyes to look at Donghyuck and his crying face.  _ Endearing, pretty, cute, beautiful.  _ Taeil would say those words repeatingly, over and over on Donghyuck’s ears, he wept his tears, tiptoeing to kiss his nose, then his free hand brushes his cheek, cupping it as a form of support and courage mayhaps, whatever that meant, this was the warmth Donghyuck had always long for, Taeil’s warmth.

They walked out of the columbarium not long after.

After that they went to a petshop, Donghyuck had always wanted a dog so Taeil lets him, strolling around the shop as Taeil waits outside, watching Donghyuck interracted with those alive beings for him because he can’t, not because he’s scared but more because of… something else he’d rather not mention. Donghyuck shifted his eyes to look at his Moon outside the store, they’d exchange smiles and he’d mouthed various things he’d get excited on, Taeil’s reaction was always three exact same reaction, a giggle, a smile, a nod. It kind of irritates him but Donghyuck don’t mind, Taeil’s smile is his personal charger anyways, or vitamin? Medicine? Whatever that is his smile would always manage to get him better.

“Are you finished?” is the first question Taeil had when he saw Donghyuck hopping out of the shop, Donghyuck huffs. “I don’t want any of those, let’s adopt one from the zoo instead! How about that?” his eyes are sparkling, shining, litting fire that it concerns Taeil. A freaking, zoo animal. Now how in the world would he refuse such request, a zoo animal? For a pet? Taeil laughs. “Baby i don’t have the money to buy you that, can we get something else for you? I live old and long enough but most of my money had went… somewhere else,” he tried to reason, full-on honesty, he wouldn’t dare lying to him and why would he?

Except for one.

He would.

The next time they already find themselves inside a theater, after renting one private movie studio, they bought one big popcorn bucket and two drinks that contrasted with one another, Donghyuck laughed at Taeil's drink selection. “Is it just me or do you have an old-fashioned taste in drinks? Come on Taeil it’s not like you live in the 18’s or something,” Donghyuck said with a joking tone, he offered his drink. “Here, try it,” he said but Taeil refused. “After that badly tasted ice cream incident i have decided to not to trust your food and beverage preference anymore,” that sounds a little mean but that’s just how Taeil is, Donghyuck remembered how that was, and his ears turned red remembering their first kiss that happened that day, he clears his throat. “W-well at least i-i kissed you…”

Hearing that sentence, Taeil scoffs. “Well? I didn’t ask you to, though?”

When Donghyuck stopped to make a long speech of how it all happened and such, Taeil stopped him, with  _ another  _ tiptoed kiss for the day, freezes the boy in his place. Taeil left with a victory smile making Donghyuck stomping cutely as he tried to catch up with Taeil’s fast-paced steps. Holding his hand all the way to the studio, they heard the studio guard complimenting them. “You two look good together,” he said, giggling. “I hope you enjoy the movie, have a good day!” that was the first time Donghyuck had ever heard a man saying that without even a single bit of a judging stare, Donghyuck squeezed Taeil’s hand before they got all the way to their seat.

They enjoyed the movie without a single disruption, only the two of them, laughs and sobs, and a bunch of hand squeezing.

But Taeil took his time, in between, he shifted his gaze to look at the laughing Donghyuck, at how beautifully drawn his face were, the god was too generous to let him live until this very moment to witness such view he had never lay his finger on. Taeil brushes his thumb on the back of Donghyuck’s hand, letting go of their hand hold just to once again intertwining them, with each fingers in-between Donghyuck’s, it diverts Donghyuck’s attention and he looked at their intertwining hands.

For a bunch of while, they did not share a word, even a single one, just looking at each other while the movie was playing as the white noises covering their hearings. But Donghyuck pulled Taeil closer to him, then they shared a kiss. It’s one kiss no different than any other but Donghyuck cried, feeling an overwhelming emotion as Taeil pulled him even closer, the kiss deepens, with a hand or two strangling on Taeil’s hair. When their kiss falters, Taeil connects the both of their foreheads, looking at his love with such endearment that Donghyuck couldn’t stand because it keeps making his tears falling, Taeil smiled, his hands framing Donghyuck’s face before pulling him in, once more. Taeil places a peck on his nose.

“Lee Donghyuck, my love, my sun,” he calls out, needed a few more times for Donghyuck to flutter open his eyes, with a glistening gaze he looks at him, right in the eyes and inches away. Taeil finds him so pretty, yet fragile, he brushes his thumb over the trace of Donghyuck’s tears, giggling, before his smile softens.

He then said. “I love you.”

That might or might not be the Moon’s first and last love confession.

But he’s more than ecstatic, euphoric, even, to share that with his one and only first love.

Donghyuck’s eyes widen, he cried out of happiness, his hands covering Taeil’s hands he presses them to feel his warmth even more, letting Taeil brushing off his fingers on his tears, though his voice cracks, though his breath hitches, he manages to let out. “Me too, me too,” with each sentence came out louder than the other.

_ “I love you too.” _

<>

They didn’t waste anymore time, they went to their next destination, the sea.

Donghyuck had always mentioned that he wanted to spend his first time at the sea with him, so he took the boy to the sea, buying a bunch of things, splashing water, he lets him play by the shore watching him flee when he saw a bunch of waves coming after him. Then Taeil watch him laughs it all off, in the end, Taeil got his clothes wet though he tried not to at first.

Ah, things he did out of love.

They came here out of Taeil’s idea to watch the sunsets by the sea, of course, Donghyuck delightfully agree, being them end up spending more than two hours at the sea. It’s oddly un-crowded too today, either Taeil put a spell so they won’t be seen and they won’t be seeing two boys enjoying their time and being in love at the same time, or something else, Donghyuck don’t know, he’d  _ rather  _ not know.

In the end, they stood side by side waiting for the sunset to be seen.

It needed a while for it to be seen, the sheer beautiful orange in the sky made Donghyuck automatically exclaim in enthusiasm to Taeil at the back. “Taeil! Sunset! Look! It appeared!” he said, pointing out to the sky while his feet unconsciously jumping in excitement, Taeil took his time to approach before Donghyuck pulled him closer forcefully because Taeil’s too slow. “You should watch it from here because i hear people saying that the best view of sunset-seeing is near the shore,” no, Taeil haven’t heard those kinds of things, that’s probably just him reasoning to get a closer look of the sunsets, he doesn't mind anything for his pretty  _ sun _ . all Taeil did is laughing it off, tightening the grip of their intertwined hands he stood there in silence.

Ah, he almost forgotten.

There’s  _ that  _ thing.

Taeil shifted his eyes to the boy on his side, the taller boy with a big wide smile in his face, it would be a shame to erase that smile today and Taeil wanted to keep that view for a while, just a little while more, ignoring the time he had left is running out just like how he made Donghyuck lost track of the time he  _ used  _ to have is running out. He probably didn’t realized but he didn’t say a word, even a single one about his  _ d-day _ , the spell he used with his remaining power after that deal with the god.

After a while, Taeil tugged Donghyuck’s hand to make him to turn to his direction. “I have… something to give to you,” he said, pulling something out from his pocket he gave Donghyuck an envelope with a shining moon shape on its front, the envelope looks awfully familiar but differ, a black envelope with glistening silver tint saying  _ to my dear sun, Lee Donghyuck _ . The boy smiled. “It’s pretty, what’s inside this envelope? Can i open it?” he asks, Taeil nodded, letting go of Donghyuck’s hand to let him open the envelope, carefully, he finds it entertaining how careful Donghyuck treated a single paper he gave that his smile grew wider.

Though it’s not a happy smile.

Taeil shifted to his side, seeing his bestfriend plus ex lover refusing to look at his direction, he felt the deathly aura of Johnny’s death scythe craving for his soul while Johnny gritted his teeth in denial, he mouthed  _ its okay from afar _ , Johnny refuses to see it, he looked away instead, covering his sight with his big hat.

“Taeil, what is this?”

Ah, Donghyuck has finished opening his letter.

He turned to Donghyuck’s confused face, knowing well how would that boy reacted seeing that his countdown has turned to minus 13 hours, he escaped death, it can’t be possible, how would he forgot that today is the day and that Taeil was here all along to took his life? Donghyuck thought, but that all changes into a bunch of piling questions in his head as he opened the fold of his letter, it’s the same gold-tinted paper, with his name carved on it, but the countdown… why is the countdown--

“The divinity let you have another chance, my sun.”

As if the world stops, Donghyuck lifted his gaze to the smiling Taeil, he lifted his gaze to his dearest moon, to his love, tears piling up he cannot believe all of this is happening, that the divinity gave him another chance to live once more he felt his knees goes weak. Taeil looked at his shining sun, he did it, it worth anything that he had sacrificed for, he shifted his gaze to the actual sun looking for the sight of the moon near and he founds nothing, even though the sun sets so enthrallingly beautiful today.

_ Don’t the moon has to sacrifice everything to made the sun shone its light so beautifully bright? _

So the moon sacrifices everything he has, for his sun to live on.

“Donghyuck can you blow on to the paper for me?” it’s a reasonable request, Taeil stood still to watch him, Donghyuck is still in shock of everything that had just happened so it took him some time to nod rigidly. He slowly blow to the surface of the paper, the golden tints turned to ashes, he widened his eyes in surprise.

The countdown changes 

_ 00;00;03;25 _

_ Moon Taeil. _

“What…” Donghyuck mumbles. “No… why… why is your name written here instead and not me? Taeil what happened? Taeil this can’t be happening right? They must have did something wrong right? There’s no way your name could be written here… you’re- you’re a grim reaper! You should be taking lives and not-”

“Donghyuck,” being cut off short, Donghyuck’s heart rate palpitated out of ordinary, worried, anxious, afraid, all of those emotions he had never felt came stronger than before, he can feel his hand shakes and he refuses to believe what is there to be admitted of, this can’t happen, that can’t happen.

But he change his mind when Taeil smiled so comfortingly soft, with his hands reaching out to his face, brushing the both of his cheek, he scoffs. “You should find someone, who would love you like you were their sun, find someone who you’d spend your whole life with, not me,” Taeil said to him. “That man can’t be an old grim reaper, right? Cause you should grow old with them together… find your happiness… don’t weep for too long.”

Now Donghyuck can visibly see him fading away, how he can visibly sees ashes coming out from his body, Donghyuck couldn’t contain his tears any longer he rushes to… he don’t know, he rushed forward embracing Taeil’s fading to ashes body with his throat choking with contained sobs. The both of them kneel, they don’t even care if their knees were covered with dirt and sand and Donghyuck cried aloud. “No… no you can’t, you can’t do this,” it all came out along with his cracking voice. “We just said i love you to each other earlier! We- we watch the sunsets together! We watch movies! You can’t leave me like this no please…” Donghyuck sobs helplessly; he can’t even see the sun as clear as before because his eyes were glistened with tears, his breath hitching with every breath he take. “Don’t… don’t leave like this…” he screamed. “Please… no…”

As donghyuck tightens the hug all Taeil can do is trying to calm his shuddering shoulders down, he didn’t mean it to be like this, a bittersweet goodbye but he didn’t want to see those tears streaming from the sun’s face. Taeil smiled. “My sun, my lovely beautiful sun, look at me, just for a little while, please?”

Taeil can feel how he’s running out of time, unwillingly breaking the embrace he connects their foreheads together, his heart broke seeing his eyes while Donghyuck can visibly seen the difference between them, he gripped Taeils hand that slowly turned to dusts, he don’t know how many minutes have passed and he wishes he could just turned back time rewinding everything. “Taeil stay… stay please…” Donghyuck would do anything at all to kept him by his side, if this is what it takes for them to be together he wouldn’t have begged him to stay back then, he would’ve let him go, anything at all, really. Taeil broke their forehead’s connection, just to take a last look on his lover’s face, his sun, his light, his free hand reaching out to Hyuck’s face brushing his cheek, tracing his tears and wiping it away. “My sun…” he murmured, chuckling in midst of his sentence. “My pretty, pretty sun.”

Donghyuck can’t beg to the divinity to let him stay, he just knew, so he slowly touches Taeil’s face remembering how it felt before his warmth completely disappears.

“Don’t let the sky mourn for too long,” Taeil said. “The world will be so dull if it don’t get its light for too long.”

And with that, Taeil starts to disappears, merging with the air, he smiled as he bid his last farewell.

Then he’s gone, while the sun wept for his disappearance, the sky turns black and this time, no moon was available to shine his world.

His moon disappears.

For him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is not the end i promise you there's something more in the future epilogue


	3. epilogue (the sun lives on)

_ Few years later. _

“Babe, the breakfast is ready, come eat!”

Donghyuck hurried himself, his hands is busy, one to brush his teeth and one grabbing the things he needed for his upcoming interview, it’s a pretty big day because his best selling novel will be adapted into a movie. A well known romance-fantasy novel he wrote in the pen-name of  _ Lee-Hyuck  _ has hit about sixty billion copies worldwide, translated into many languages one of them being english, of course. Donghyuck ran down stairs, his eyes meets with his busy husbands and his two kids at the infant seats, Jeno smiled. “Good morning, you seems to have your hands full,” he greeted Donghyuck, putting down the spatulas he realized Donghyuck has already all dressed up, he sighs. “Missing breakfast again?”

Feeling guilty, Donghyuck took his time to greet his children with a kiss on each of their foreheads. “I have to go baby, the interview is starting in a few minutes,” he excuses himself, approaching Jeno stealing a kiss from the seemingly upset man, Jeno has gotten used to this, Donghyuck would always woke up at least fifteen to twenty minutes later than he supposed to, maybe because he stayed up all night to finish his writings. He flicked Donghyuck’s forehead. “I know the interview is starting in about half an hour honey, come on, at least seat for a while your kid haven’t seen you for days.”

Donghyuck couldn’t say no, at least not for his boys.

He took his time to joke around with the two miracle of his life and purposefully, Jeno turned on the television to see if there’s any new headlines going on, his eyes widen when he heard a familiar name, turning up the volume he lets Donghyuck listened to it attentively.  _ “...Best-selling novel by author Lee-hyuck is about to be adapted in to a movie by the columbia pictures studio… the novel, titled ‘sun and moon’ telling about a human cancer patient meeting a grim reaper falling in love in midst of them not being able to be together gained a lot of attention due to its detailed writing and raw poured emotion in the novel… fans are wondering if the Columbia Pictures acn portray the same raw emotion with their directors…” _

Yeah, he really went from there to here.

What a long way.

Donghyuck took his leave then, with a public bus his fans crowded again, asking for autographs and a pic or two together, it feels nice, but also sad, he don’t know. Donghyuck scoffs when he realized what was he feeling. “Come on Lee Donghyuck it’s been ten years and you’re a married man, let’s move on okay?” as if he’s assuring himself, well, in a way he is. Trying to convince himself to not get too caught up in the past and that he has a life in the present is hard, at least he’s grateful Jeno was always there all along, through every ups and downs, that’s the reason he married that man.

Just like how he wished him to do, that day.

Ah, let’s just stop talking about that, shall we? We have a big day ahead of us, let’s not ruin this beautiful day by thinking about what we supposed to leave in the past, Donghyuck thought, as he heard he has arrived at his destination, he got off the bus, walking down to the train station there he met someone awfully familiar that he can’t believe has chosen to love instead of keeping the honorful position as the god’s right hand man, he laughs. “I still can’t believe you choose to left to became a freaking photographer, not to mention, professional photographer, John, nice to meet you again.”

A lot have changed in a span of ten years, including him, after he was discharged from the Hospital he tried to live on, try to do anything at all to live, and so he became a writer, writing two books before  _ sun and moon  _ came out. Donghyuck walked alongside Johnny on their way to the studio, it was an awkward silence before then Johnny asks. “Do you still visits that sea? Every full moon?” he said, his eyes being occupied, or trying to, with something else. “I heard it’s going to be super moon today, you should visit.”

He don’t really know if it was a good idea.

He haven’t even read the letter that man gave him after his countdown dissipates into thin air and turned into a regular silver tinted letter.

“I’ll think about it,” Donghyuck responded.

<>

“So, i heard this story is inspired by real events, is that true?”

Basic question, he’s used to hear this from every single interviewer he had talked too, whether or not they’re from a magazine, or a famous youtube channel that discuss about recent fiction or whatever, they always asks that question, and his answer will also, always remain the same. Donghyuck smiled. “Yes, yes it is, i get the same question in every interview i had its starting to get boring answering these kind of question,” the audience laughed alongside the host. “But jokes aside, it is based on real life experience.”

The audience turned quiet once Donghyuck re-clear himself while the host, the interviewer’s smile grew even wider. “I see, but there is also a fan theory that your story is not only based on a real life event but also based on a place not so far located from here, at a nearby sea theres a wooden tomb filled with moonflowers and there carved a hand-written sentence there… have you been there?”

The wide smile on Donghyuck’s face fades away, he remember how everyday without any exception he walked his way there and weep facing the moonless dawn, hoping someone would return the moon to him. He couldn’t even bear looking at Johnny who he knew was staying by his side all those times. Donghyuck gritted his teeth, his nails digging into the skin of the back of his hands, he took a deep breath. “I do… several time, but now i haven’t got the time too, everyone should visit the tomb though because it will be supermoon today!” trying to look happy while remembering something sad is pretty burdensome, to Donghyuck, he smiled again facing the camera now, as if assuring the audience that he’s alright.

The interviewer tilted his head. “Why supermoon? I heard you requested this interview to be done on this day because of the supermoon rumor tonight.”

Donghyuck smiled. “It’s a personal reason.”

No one will understand him and how his moon used to snuggle facing the bright moon, stealing soft kisses, or making jokes only the two understands.

No, no one will understand.

<>

He arrived quite later than he planned to be.

Donghyuck didn’t stop to eat, he walked straight to his office room, rummaging through his stuffs to find that unopened letter the Moon gave him long ago, it still made him choke, the one who gave him hope, the one who gave him the reason to stay. He don’t know until how long will he keep being like this, burying the memories of him deep down his guts, Donghyuck sat himself down, staring at the completely unharmed letter Moon Taeil gave him ten years ago.

He could still smell the smell of salt and sea, how funny, even after years have passed he kept the letter hidden deep in his drawer he could still smell the faint smell of the past.

“Okay, i can do this,” he had decided, he had to read this letter if he wanted to get going and move on from the memories of those past, not that those past gave him bad memories, but because those memories… pained him more than intended. “I can do this, you can do this Lee Donghyuck,” he repeated, over and over again, he watch his hands tremble holding the black sky envelope, he had just realized that there was little, very, little and unrecognized detail that the envelope had little glitters that made it looks like stars. Donghyuck scoffs, and smiled, before then he had the courage to open the envelope.

The paper was still in perfect condition, with no harm whatsoever, folded into two parts he opened the fold, tracing every parts of the paper to remind him of what he had left in the past, the things he had decide to buried until now he had a family, he loved someone else, wholeheartedly. He take a long breath before beginning to read the letter he had decide to forget, fluttering open his eyes, he can feel his own tears at the edge of his eyes.

And then he began to read.

_ To my dear Sun who outshine the whole world. _

_ My first love. _

_ Lee Donghyuck. _

He didn’t recall when was the time he had begun to cry, or when did the world seems so blurry or when did he begin to sob. Maybe because it all was too much for him, or maybe because it was a wrong decision to reopen a part of a memory that was supposed to dusted in the corner of his mind, he cried alone in his office until he suddenly felt someone else's warmth wrapping over him, it was Jeno. Donghyuck took Jenos hand onto his and looking at it might have made him feel better for a little bit, the moon-shaped carved jewelry on their wedding ring, or maybe something else.

After a while he confessed the ugly truth he had hid in his heart for a long time. “I’m missing him,” Donghyuck said. “I’m sorry,”

Jeno nodded. “I can tell, and it's okay,” he cooed into Donghyuck’s ear, calming him down. “It’s okay, i know, it’s okay,”

That night didn’t go as promised, he planned to take his family out for moon sight-seeing, but he ended up in Jeno’s arms, cuddling, his back facing the moon because he can’t stand it’s bright light tonight. He kept feeling guilty because he can’t forget about the man of his past, even inside this man’s arms.

He snuggled into Jenos arms.

And suddenly, it’s morning again.

<>

  
  


Mayhaps not all beautiful things should lasts forever, and Donghyuck had gotten used to that when Jeno said he wanted a divorce, of course, it’d be unfair of him to keep him staying when he, in fact, is still drowned with the fact that he still is in love with the moon.

The divorce went quite well, despite all the children crying that it made them decided that they can stay together for a few days, not long after then Jeno moved out, leaving him and his son living in a big empty space with not really anyone filling up the emptiness in their house, well, until Johnny gave him the idea of renting some rooms, the place weren’t all-so-big anymore after Yangyang and Jisung came, along with their weekly hookups that had him shaking his head, he kept telling his son to not be like them when he got bigger, he didn’t understand what Donghyuck meant. Oh anyway, Sun and moon became a super big hit of the decade, everyone loved it, it was dubbed to more than twenty languages despite it became a big controversy in his own country, when Johnny came to listen to his story he laughs. “Well? At least you got big-time royalty and some pretty good life.”

Johnny’s right.

He lives a good life.

It was that time of the year again, he woke up to the prediction of supermoon again, he rushed downstairs to his office when he heard Yangyang, now his son’s personal, unpaid, and loyal babysitter yelling from the kitchen. “Where are you going you seemed like you were going after a deadline,” Donghyuck chuckled hearing that sentence, before then he slam shut his office room leaving Yangyang, Jisung and his son outside. After the two of them came renting his room Donghyuck felt like he’s taking care of two more sons, tiring, but at least his son got more company.

Once in a while, there will be times where his son, Dalmyung, asks questions like. “People have mothers but why do i only have fathers? Did papa nono gave birth to me?” and Yangyang who heard the question would, again, laugh rolling on the floor while Jisung stay unbothered with his games, leaving Donghyuck choking at the question, well that was when Donghyuck heard them the first time coming out from Dalmyung’s lips, now he’d only laugh it off. “You see, my moon, there’s a lot of things you won’t understand but you will when you grow up, and we get to move out from here,” he would cradle his son to his arms, booping his nose. “But some people only have mothers, some people only have fathers.”

Dalmyung tilted his head, his father knew his son wouldn’t understand, growing up in a country where relationship like his is heavily discriminated. Donghyuck kissed his son’s forehead once again. “If you’ve grown older, i will tell you the reason why i called you the moon…” Donghyuck shifted his gaze to the blue sky up above. “I also have an unfinished letter to be deliver, i can work on that later,” him with his son in his arm walked back inside their house, being greeted with the nosy child-like adults inside.

When Donghyuck has the chance, and after he resolved everything, he will, Donghyuck will told him about the moon who sacrificed everything to the sun, about the moon who loved him, a story about how he meet the moon when the darkness surrounds him and how he fell in love with its beautiful dim light who shone the pitch black sky.

Yeah, when the time comes, he will.

<>

_ Ten years later, present days _

“Is this the place?” 

“Yes, just go deeper inside then you’ll find the infamous tomb that everyone is talking about, have a good day sir.”

Dalmyung have arrived, with two letters from his father, and one received and have to be retrieved back to where it came from, he walked through the sea searching for the so called wooden tomb that was filled with moonflowers, he find them not long after strolling around, smiling, he observed around the tomb reciting its name that was covered with sands. “Moon Taeil,” he murmured, kneeling to get a closer look. “So your name was Taeil, uncle Moon Taeil, can i call you that?” Dalmyung chuckled. “Even though my father did say you were more than a thousand years old, and that i shouldn’t be calling you uncle because of that, my father was joking though, i don’t want to enrage an infamous grim reaper.”

Silence filling the air, he sighs. “It took me long enough to finally pay you a visit,” he said. “Hello uncle Moon.”

Dalmyung laughe, not long until he rose from the ground, now facing down to the poorly made tomb that he predicted was made by his father. “Father told me a lot about you, you were one cold hearted man in his opinion,” he can’t even count how many times have he scoffs by now. “But my father wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you, i think i owe you a gratitude, so thank you, uncle Moon, thank you so much,” the breeze were quite strong this evening, with the sun on its edge he saw a little glimpse of the moon peeking through the clouds it remind him of what his father said to him not so long ago. “A tale of a moon who loved the sun, the moon sacrificed everything to be by the sun’s side, last year my father cried watching the eclipse, gosh i thought he was being sensitive again but then he said it was about you, i’m… a little bit jealous you know, it’s like you first then me second, how could a father rank his divided love like that? It’s unfair! You died!”

Maybe it’’s just him, but somehow he felt a presence not so far around him. “I feel like you’re around, or maybe i want to treat it like it’s you, yeah i’m just gonna treat it like it’s your unsighted presence, my father would believe me,” he made fun of his father too much he’s enjoying this, he faced the empty space as if there was someone else here with him, maybe Taeil, maybe someone else who knows? “If you’re alive i would like to drink with you, my father told me it was bad for my health, understandable, he went through so much in his twenties, he was grateful he found you.”

He didn’t came here to do a peptalk with the dead, he came here for some other business, but it felt nice talking to the dead, oh well would you look at that he sounds pretty weird. Dalmyung search through his pocket for a lighter. “Father said, i have to retrieve these, and since he doesn’t have the ability to turn the both of these to dust, i had to burn it,” he said. “It’s quite a pity, i liked the envelope so much, maybe in the future i should apply as a grim reaper to get these kinds of envelopes--”

He stopped mid sentence when he heard a thundering voice from the sky.

He scoffs. “--or maybe not.”

Dalmyung waited for the sun to dip even lower before he started to set the letters on fire, putting the three of them in a vase he brought, just in case he can’t litter (of course he can’t though) and putting it right in the middle of the moonflowers and the tomb, he watches the fire died down, along with the sun exchanging position with the moon. Weirdly, it was predicted that it’ll be crescent tonight but the moon shown its full on bright form, took some times but when the fire finally died down, instead of smell of burning he smelt something nice instead. “Ah, right, i almost forgot that these Moonflowers grew at night,”

“I see, has the letters arrived to you? Is this a way of you to thank me from up there?”

Dalmyung never really understood his father and his love for the moon, but after everything that happened, maybe he’d believe him for a little bit, he turned around facing the moon. “You were… watching all these times, don’t you?” mumbling all by himself, he thanked himself for having a precaution and rented this place for a whole night. “Is that why the moon always shone so bright when i was looking at it?”

Maybe it was a yes, when the breeze wrapped his body contrasting with the earlier warmth he felt, it made him shiver, he smiled. “...Father must have been delighted on his way to meet you," he said, looking away, he chuckled as he remembered how his father refused to deliver those unsent letter to him that Donghyuck made Dalmyung do it as his last wish before he passed. "He even made me send this letters to you," Dalmyung fixed his position, bowing 180 degrees to the wooden tomb. "please treat him well, uncle moon.”

With that he take a single glance to the vase and the tomb. "Farewell, thank you for everything you've done for my father," he said.

In the end, Lee Donghyuck never really got over his lover, the Moon who always shone when the night came, he live his life willingfully as it was the last dying wish of his lover before he turned into ashes, before he heard the full story being told by his father he was confused of the reason why would his father willingfully embrace the moon, of why would he took his time and gaze at the moon until he fell asleep at his office.

But maybe, everyone was right.

Even after all of the little fights and shit he went through because he divorced with Jeno, Jeno would always says. "He let go because he felt like it was unfair of holding me in place while his heart would still went with the moon, to the moon, and for the moon," he'd always say. "So take time to understand, don't hate him too much, okay? He loves you too Dalmyung, like how he'd love the moon." Jeno didn't lie, his father really love him, he felt it the rest of his life.

just like how he treasured the moon.

He read the sun and moon, and its sequel that his father wrote before he died out of an unfortunate accident two months ago, took him some times but he managed to collect himself and went to the tomb.

In the end, even when the sun couldn't finish his one and only last task to deliver his letter, the sun lives on, telling the story of how he loved the moon and how the moon loves him back, wrote lots of lots of paragraph about how the moon lit up his gloomy life.

In the end, he lives on, telling the story about how he found a spark of light in midst of pitch-black pithole he kept living on.

Dalmyung smiled to the moon. "May you two live the life the two of you hadn't got the chance to up there."

He walked away, he walked away home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and finally i finish writing this, it took me days lmao i'm so sorry if this made you cry (I cried when i wrote the ending too, okay, it's fair) and thank you for enjoying my work until this far (I don't want to sound desperate but please drop your thoughts in the comments after you read)


End file.
